Selected
Article:
Potential
railroad track closure has Delta leaders concerned over
economic impact
Grenada, Batesville stand to be affected
By Mark Bird
The
possible closure of two segments of Canadian National railroad
track in Mississippi, totaling almost 200 miles, has Delta
towns along the route assessing the likely economic impact.
While cautioning that there is nothing more than speculation
at present, civic leaders say they are already working to
raise awareness of the issue.
One of the two segments serves towns from Grenada northward,
and Phillip Heard, executive director of the Grenada County
Chamber of Commerce, says line closure would definitely
affect the town. “We have several companies located
here which are substantial users-if it were taken away,
it would impact these companies’ bottom line. One
of the local industries I spoke with, for example, told
me that if they had to turn to trucking for shipments, etc.,
the additional cost would be anywhere from $1 million to
$1.25 million,” Heard says.
The City of Grenada has purchased 1, 175 acres north of
the town-the property’s entire eastern boundary is
the CN tracks. “Proximity to the line could be a tremendous
asset to us in marketing the land to potential industries,
and losing the line could certainly prove detrimental to
our marketing efforts,” Heard comments.
In Batesville, Paul Alexander with The Panola Partnership
expresses a somewhat more positive outlook, while remaining
cautious. “Considering the amount of industry at this
end of the line, we feel the potential is good for keeping
the line open, and even upgrading it,” he comments.
“However, closure would certainly affect the kinds
of companies that might look to locate here. And, it would
even affect our roads-because of the increased truck traffic.
We hope that a decision will be made quickly, because of
several pending projects that could be affected.”
The catalyst for the speculation is the closing of the International
Paper facility in Natchez, along a track segment from Brookhaven
to Natchez, and subsequent letters from CN to area customers
stating that the railroad would begin a study of the two
segments’ future because of potential drops in volume.
Another troubling sign, according to some civic leaders,
is an apparent decrease in maintenance of the line.
“As I understand, CN is likely to make one of three
choices,” explains Phillip Heard. “First, they
could simply do nothing. Or, they could attempt to sell
all or part of the line. Third, they could indeed abandon
it. And even if they did sell, the odds are that rates would
increase substantially.”
While no decision has been made, or even a timeline established,
efforts are already underway to address the situation. “The
Mississippi Development Authority is heading up an effort
to determine what CN is going to do, and what we need to
be doing about it,” says Heard. “We’ve
made contact with the legislature—so have local industries,
as well as economic development groups and industries all
along the line–to make sure that they are on top of
the situation and keeping a watchful eye.” DBJ
